Arrival at Eikhams.—Native Dogs; cruelly treated.—Jonker
Afrikaner.—The Author visits the Red Nation; the bad Repute
of these People.—The Author attacked by Ophthalmia.—The
embryo Locust.—The “flying” Locust; its Devastations.—The
Locust-bird.—Arrival at Rehoboth; the Place described.
In the afternoon of the 20th of February we drove in to Eikhams during a
terrific thunder-storm, drenched to the skin. The deluging rain continued
to descend the whole of the ensuing night, and the place on the following
morning looked like a foaming torrent. In consequence of this inundation,
our ox-gear, and, in short, every thing untanned, was completely
saturated, and greatly resembled a heap of moist wash-leather.
The starved native dogs had taken advantage of this circumstance, and
devoured rather more than two feet of our “trek-touw.” The curs are
of the greatest annoyance to the traveler in Namaqua-land, for, since
the owners rarely feed them, they greedily devour almost every thing
they come across. I have had my powder-flask, “veld” shoes, and even
rifle (the stock of which may have happened to be covered with hide, in
order to keep it from cracking) abstracted by them from my side during
the night. A person’s first impulse on making the discovery is to vow
vengeance on the head of the thieves; but, on seeing the emaciated state
of the poor creatures, in which every rib might be counted, anger is
turned into pity, and the uplifted arm, ready to strike the blow, falls
to its place.
It has been said with much truth by a missionary that “the Namaquas
feed their dogs with stripes.” From being constantly kicked and knocked
about in the most brutal manner, they gradually become so accustomed to
ill-treatment that flogging produces little or no effect. When struck,
they merely shrug up their backs, open their jaws, grin in a ghastly
manner, and, if the chastisement be continued, howl most piteously. This,
and their skeleton appearance, are enough to sicken a person.
It would be somewhat difficult to determine to what species of the canine
race these dogs belong, or from what breed they originally descended.
They bear some slight resemblance to those I have seen at the homesteads
of the Swedish peasants.[53]
Jonker had removed his werft to some little distance from Eikhams. He
invariably did this every year after the rains, in order to save the
pasturage for the dry season. I rode over to the village, where I found
nearly the whole tribe—women and children, at least—congregated. This
was an opportunity I had long desired, since it would enable me to form a
rough estimate of their number. Jonker and most of the men were absent;
but by counting the huts, and taking the average number of individuals
to each, I came to the conclusion that the aggregate of Namaquas capable
of carrying arms did not exceed five hundred. The servants, or rather
slaves, on the other hand, consisting of Bushmen, Hill-Damaras, and
impoverished Damaras, were probably three or four times as numerous. By
supposing each man to be possessed of one gun, which is perhaps below the
mark, Jonker’s tribe possess in round numbers two thousand firelocks. If
their courage corresponded to their numerical strength, they might prove
a formidable body even to Europeans, but this is fortunately far from
being the case.
Jonker was indebted to us several head of cattle, and we were accordingly
anxious for his return, but no person could or would inform us when
this was likely to happen. With regard to other inquiries, such
as the object and motive of his present journey, the answers were
equally unsatisfactory. Nevertheless, the shyness of the natives, when
interrogated on these points, coupled with our knowledge that Jonker was
accompanied by almost all his warriors, made us suspect that he had gone
on a plundering expedition against the Damaras.
After a few days’ stay at Eikhams we directed our steps to a powerful
tribe of Namaquas, known as the “Roode-Natie,” or Red Nation. I had two
objects in view for visiting these people, namely, to trade, and to learn
something about them and their country. Every one I met, including the
missionaries, represented them as the most barbarous and brutal of all
the Hottentots in Great Namaqua-land. Only one trader had visited them,
and him they treated so shamefully as to discourage others from making a
like attempt. I was determined, however, if possible, to ascertain the
cause of their evil reputation, and to endeavor to establish friendly
relations with them.
My reception was such as to corroborate the ill reports that had reached
my ears. At the first weft we came to they stole a large quantity of
clothing belonging to our servants, but, after some trouble, we succeeded
in recovering the property. At the next village they threatened to shoot
us on the spot if we did not sell our things at their own terms! Three
different times their chief sent to say that if we attempted to stir
without his orders he would fire upon us. To this insolent message we
quietly replied that he would have been at liberty to prevent our coming
to his werft, but, with regard to our departure, we should consult our
own convenience. Finding us determined, and that we were preparing to
start, he soon came to terms, and in the most humble manner offered
an explanation and apology for his rude conduct, which, under the
circumstances, we thought it best to accept.
We were just about to turn our backs upon the Red Nation when a messenger
arrived from Cornelius, the chief, with a civil and pressing invitation
to visit him at his kraal. After some little hesitation, we consented,
and speedily followed the envoy. On arriving at the werft, prettily
situated at the foot of a hill near the banks of the Kubakop River, which
here forced its passage through a very remarkable range of mountains, I
immediately called the tribe together and reproached them for their bad
behavior toward strangers. I moreover explained to them the impolicy
of such conduct, and how very injurious it would prove to their own
interest, since they were entirely dependent on the Cape Colony for their
supplies of arms and ammunition, clothing, and other commodities.
My efforts in bringing about a thorough good understanding were
successful. A short time afterward, indeed, a number of traders,
encouraged by my favorable reception, visited these people, and supplied
their wants at the same rate as paid by the other Hottentot tribes
residing in Great Namaqua-land. Moreover, they have lately admitted a
missionary among them, and it is to be hoped that through good examples
they may ultimately be civilized.
The chief stronghold of the Red Nation is about the Kubakop, but a part
of the tribe is settled on the Fish River. Taken as a whole, they possess
probably the worst portion of the northern part of Great Namaqua-land.
They call themselves _Kaikhous_, a word signifying large ridges of
hills, in contradistinction to Zwartbooi’s tribe, the name of which is
_Kharikhous_, or small ridges. They look upon Jonker and his people, who
are known as “Oerlam,” not only with jealousy, but with something akin to
contempt.
I found but few Damara slaves among the Red Nation, which at first struck
me as singular, for their outrage on the Damaras was, at least, of equal
extent to that perpetrated by the rest of the northern Namaquas. I
could only explain this by supposing that they killed their prisoners.
I afterward learned that my conjecture was correct, and that, having
surrounded a werft, they coolly shot down every soul, women and children
not excepted. However, having lately discovered that the Damaras
make useful drudges, they have, from interested motives, become less
bloody-minded.
While staying with Cornelius I was attacked by ophthalmia, and for a few
days suffered great agonies, but, fortunately, before the disease had
arrived at its maximum, it took a favorable turn.
Having succeeded in disposing of the greater part of our goods, we took
leave of our host, and bent our steps toward Rehoboth, which was on our
road to the Cape. The day after our departure we met with vast numbers of
the larvæ of the locust (_gryllus devastator_, Lich.), commonly called
by the Boers “voet-gangers,” literally, foot-goers. In some places they
might be seen packed in layers several inches in thickness, and myriads
were crushed and maimed by our wagon and cattle. Toward nightfall they
crawled on to the bushes and the shrubs, many of which, owing to their
weight and numbers, were either bowed down to the ground or broken short
off. They were of a reddish color, with dark markings, and, as they hung
thus suspended, they looked like clusters of rich fruit. As they hopped
along the path and among the grass, their appearance was no less curious
and striking.
These “voet-gangers” are justly dreaded by the colonists, as no obstacle
seems capable of staying their progress. They are said to cross stagnant
pools—ay, even the Orange River—by the leading multitudes throwing
themselves heedlessly into the water, where they are drowned, thus
affording the survivors a temporary bridge. Fires, which are lighted in
their path in the hope of staying their course, are extinguished by their
myriads. “All human endeavors to diminish their numbers,” says a recent
author, “would appear like attempting to drain the ocean by a pump.”
As we traveled on next morning we encountered the locust itself, and in
such masses as literally to darken the air.
“Onward they came, a dark continuous cloud
Of congregated myriads numberless,
The rushing of whose wings was as the sound
Of a broad river, headlong in its course
Plunged from a mountain summit, or the roar
Of a wild ocean in the autumn storm,
Shattering its billows on a shore of rocks.”
Our wagon, or any other equally conspicuous object, could positively not
be distinguished at the distance of one hundred paces. In a particular
spot, within the circumference of a mile they had not left a particle
of any green thing. The several columns that crossed our path in the
course of the day must each have been many miles in length and breadth.
The noise of their wings was very great, not unlike that caused by a
gale of wind whistling through the shrouds of a ship at anchor. It was
interesting to witness at a distance the various shapes and forms that
these columns assumed, more especially when crossing mountain ranges. At
one time they would rise abruptly in a compact body, as if propelled by
a strong gust of wind; then, suddenly sinking, they would disperse into
smaller battalions, not unlike vapors floating about a hill side at early
morn, and when slightly agitated by the breeze; or they would resemble
huge columns of sand or smoke, changing every minute their shape and
evolutions.
During their flight numbers were constantly alighting, an action which
has not inaptly been compared to the falling of large snow-flakes. It is,
however, not until the approach of night that they encamp. Woe to the
spot they select as a resting-place! When the rising sun again speeds
their departure, localities which, on the preceding evening, were rich in
vegetation, are bare and naked as the Sahara. “When a swarm alights on
a garden,” says Mr. Moffat, “or even fields, the crop for one season is
destroyed, I have observed a field of young maize devoured in the space
of two hours. They eat not only tobacco and every other vegetable, but
also flannel and linen.”
From what has been said, it is evident that the husbandman has just
reason to be appalled at the approach of this destructive insect. To the
poor Bushmen, “the children of the desert,” on the other hand, who have
neither herds to lose by famine nor corn-fields to be destroyed by their
devastations, their arrival is a cause of rejoicing. Pringle, in his song
of the wild Bushman, has the following lines:
“Yea, even the wasting locust-swarm,
Which mighty nations dread,
To me nor terror brings nor harm;
I make of them my bread.”
On the present occasion we found a great number of Hottentots, as also
Hill-Damaras, busy collecting the locusts, which was done in a very
simple and ingenious manner. Having gathered together large quantities
of dry fuel, fires were lighted directly in their path, and as the
insects passed over the flames, their wings were scorched, and they fell
helplessly to the ground.
They are also collected by cart-loads at night when they have retired
to rest; but this plan is occasionally attended with danger. “It has
happened that in gathering them people have been bitten by venomous
reptiles. On one occasion a woman had been traveling several miles with a
large bundle of locusts on her head, when a serpent, which had been put
into the sack with them, found its way out. The woman, supposing it to
be a thong dangling about her shoulders, laid hold of it with her hand,
and feeling that it was alive, instantly precipitated the bundle to the
ground and fled.”
The locusts, after being partially roasted, are eaten fresh, or they are
dried in the hot ashes, and then stored away for future emergences. The
natives reduce them also to powder or meal by means of two stones or a
wooden mortar, which powder, when mixed with water, produces a kind of
soup or stir-about. I have tasted locusts prepared in various ways, but I
can not say that I have found them very palatable. But they must contain
a vast deal of nourishment, since the poor people thrive wonderfully on
them.
Birds of almost every description, more especially storks and kites, are
seen devouring them greedily.
The great enemy of the locust, however, is the locust-bird, or the
“spring-haan vogel,” as it is termed by the colonists. This is described
as a species of thrush, about the size of a swallow, and is a constant
attendant on the insect. It is even said to build its nest and rear its
young in the midst of locusts, which, moreover, occasionally prey on
each other; for when a locust becomes maimed or crippled, its companions
instantly pounce upon and devour it.
The locust which causes such havoc to vegetation in Africa is said to be
a different species to that common to Asia, where also, though perhaps
not to the same extent, it commits great ravages.
The Cape Colony has been particularly subject to this dreadful scourge,
which is invariably followed by famine. The inroads of the locusts are
periodical; according to Pringle, about once every fifteen years. In
1808, after having laid waste a considerable portion of the country,[54]
they disappeared, and did not return till 1824. They then remained for
several years, but in 1830 took their departure.
The proper home of the locust is yet a mystery. Experience only tells us
that they come southward from the north. They rarely appear in any number
except in years of abundance.
Almost every day during several months we encountered innumerable swarms
of these insects, and it was not till we had crossed the Orange River
that we fairly lost sight of them.
On the 15th of March we reached Rehoboth, where, as already said, there
is a missionary station pertaining to the Rhenish Society. Here I had the
pleasure of making the acquaintance of the Rev. Messrs. Kleinschmidt and
Vollmer. They resided in substantial clay houses thatched with reeds. The
church, in the erection of which Mr. Kleinschmidt had taken a very active
part, is a handsome and roomy structure, capable of holding several
hundred people. From the disproportionate breadth of the building,
however, the roof could not sustain its own weight, and some time
previously to my visit the greater part had fallen down. Divine service,
nevertheless, continued to be performed in that portion of the building
which remained uninjured.
At this period the station was in a most flourishing condition. But,
alas! circumstances have since changed, and it is now a question whether
the mission can continue to exist. Should it be abandoned, ten years of
unremitted labor and exertion will be entirely lost, and I sadly fear it
will break the heart of its founder—the worthy and venerable Kleinschmidt.
Rehoboth is well supplied with good and clear water from a fountain hard
by. There is also a copious warm spring flowing from a limestone rock;
but the water is looked upon as unwholesome, and only made use of for
cattle, washing of clothes, and the seasoning of timber.
The warm spring in question is situated on rising ground, and
consequently affords facilities for irrigation, though, unfortunately,
the soil is scanty and unfavorable for gardening. The missionaries
and a few natives have by perseverance succeeded in fertilizing
patches of ground which are tolerably productive. Indeed, I have known
a fig-tree—certainly not above five or six feet in height—in Mr.
Kleinschmidt’s garden to produce a dish of fruit every day for a space
of more than three months. The garden vegetables which thrive best are
pumpkins, calabashes, watermelons, &c. The wild gourd, or melon, is
also found in great abundance about Rehoboth. When ripe, this fruit is
collected by the natives, dried, and stored away for seasons of scarcity.